Thursday, December 3, 2015

Normally, Radio BSOTS is all about the music, a platform where I get all geeked out about artists and songs and I invite you to geek out with me. And then there's this little thing called BSOTS GONE (buck)WILD, an all-too-rare occurrence where the gloves come off and you learn about me alongside the music (for better or worse).

Saturday, October 24, 2015

Because sometimes you just need some sun-drenched music in your life for motivation. Sending this mix out to all whom the show title applies. Camp Lo-Fi's getting some broadcast love right now, but rest assured...the podcast ain't goin' NOWHERE. Trust.

Sunday, July 19, 2015

This show is about a week past the date that I originally wanted it to be released online. Time challenges and a sluggish computer made things more difficult than they needed to be, but it's here.

A few corrections, if I may. First off, "Soon Come Soon" by Young Fathers is a standalone single and is not a part of any of their albums (I erroneously attached the song to their Mercury Prize-winning album Dead). Second, the news regarding Netlabel Day will sound dated at this point, as that event occurred on July 14, 2015. Although that day has come and gone, we as music lovers get to reap the benefits long after the fact, so make sure to check out the list of releases to find out about all the FREE AND LEGAL music that dropped that day.

In the meantime, Camp Lo-Fi continues to play catch-up with releases from this year and last year. Hope you enjoy the show. Thanks for listening and please visit the Speakpipe page to leave voice message feedback.

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

It's been three and a half months since the last BSOTS episode. During that time, this show has been making itself known as a radio broadcast. In all honesty, the broadcast has taken top priority, but the podcast has not been forgotten about. With this episode, I celebrate a return to home base and get back to the standard practice of music appreciation.

Thanks for checking out this episode and for hanging in there with me. For those who would like to leave voice message feedback, you can do so on the Speakpipe page. There's more to come...

Sunday, April 26, 2015

On February 2, 2015, I found myself at The Social Butterfly lounge in Brooklyn, NY celebrating the 2nd Anniversary of Bondfire Radio. The co-founders TastyKeish and Coole High had blown out the candles on the cake, the music was pumping and spirits were high. Shortly before gathering for a group photo, Coole gave me a big hug and said, "Welcome to the family." Four days later, Radio BSOTS made its Bondfire Radio broadcast debut. I hadn't done live radio since the Spring semester of 1998 at SUNY Albany for WCDB and I was nervous as hell, but still managed to pull off a decent show even with broadcaster jitters.

And to think, it was around that same time last year that I seriously considered calling it quits. Had I done that, this new chapter of Radio BSOTS may not have happened.

I have close friends who had envisioned my show on Bondfire, so when one of them let me know that they were considering show submissions for the Winter/Spring 2015 programming schedule, I took that as a sign. I was over the moon when my show was accepted and became even more excited when I listened to other shows on the station. The morning show alone made me realize that I would be a part of something truly special: independent radio that's Black owned and community minded with amazingly diverse programming. I became a fan before my first actual broadcast for the station, the archives of other shows now dominating my listening time every week.

Suddenly, Radio BSOTS had something that it has never had before in its nine and a half years of existence: a regular day and time slot. If I'm not doing the show live in the studio on an alternating Friday from 8:30 to 10 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, then it's prerecorded beforehand to air during that time. With the broadcast taking top priority, the podcast went silent after the Cupid's Hunt episode released during Valentine's Day weekend. The every day demands of being a husband and father coupled with a relentless day job forced me to keep the main thing the main thing. In terms of my creative outlets, the main thing is BSOTS on Bondfire. It may look like I gave up podcasting for Lent and then some, but I didn't plan it that way.

Over the past three months, I realized something: I don't feel like walking this audio content creation road by myself anymore. Being a part of Bondfire Radio shed a blinding light on how lonely I felt in the podcasting world. Granted, I can certainly take the blame for not getting out to meetups and conferences to meet people in person, but this new experience has shown me what I have been missing in being part of a team. I can actually see how that's done now, as compared to my WCDB days where I made it all about me. I've been referring to Bondfire as "radio redemption," a place where I can start again now that I can handle the responsibility of having a radio show, recognizing it as a privilege and not a right. I love being able to root and represent for others at Bondfire in various social media spaces as well as on the air. The station just added a new show to the schedule and it feels like getting a new family member.

At the same time, I know that the broadcast opportunity wouldn't have come without the podcast grind. I've been listening to some of the earlier shows on my podcast feed from 2008 lately and it's nice to hear episodes from seven years ago that I can still stand behind. In addition, I've been very inspired by my brother-in-podcasting, DarrenKeith of My Love For Music, who's been making up for lost time by releasing several shows within days of each other, providing the universe with hours of chill out music (the world can certainly use that right now). At the moment, I'm gearing up for a return in podcast form, reminding myself that, above all else, this should be fun. I'm feeling the feed to tap into the energy that I had back in 2008, or at least play around with the structure of the show a little bit so that I don't get bored. There has been no shut down for Camp Lo-Fi. A quiet period, yes, but no shut down.

Sunday, February 15, 2015

Without you, this show is a loveless hitchhiker thumbing its way down the information superhighway. Leave feedback at 1-206-278-0751 or the Speakpipe page, or email us at radiobsots@gmail.com.

This is my contribution to the 8th Annual Cupid's Hunt Podcast Collaboration, recorded on Valentine's Day 2015. This one is for those still feeling the afterglow as well as those who carry on after the love is gone. This is for the ecstatic and those who would say "it's complicated" regarding their relationship status. Whether in love, out of love, or somewhere in between, there's probably at least one song here that you can relate to, be it vocal or instrumental.

I hope you enjoy this one and will check out all the other great mixes that are part of this year's Cupid's Hunt event.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Without you, this show is hopelessly trapped in a winter storm of its own ego. Leave feedback at 1-206-278-0751 or the Speakpipe page, or email us at radiobsots@gmail.com.

Seeing as how the first month of a new year is almost over, I figured I'd really ought to get Radio BSOTS for 2015 underway. As per usual, the first shows of a new year are spent picking some of last year's selections, particularly those releases that tend to go unrecognized in most circles. Whether it's the head nod brillliance of Submerse, the sanctified spitting of Jackie Hill Perry, the pop perfection of Nautic, or the grown folks hip-hop of The 1978ers, there just might be something for everyone on this episode.